Fiddle 911 -- Molly's Emergency

When you sell electric violins for a living, you don't get a lot of emergency calls. But when Dianna discovered the stage crew for the Miss Texarkana pageant was going to amplify her daughter's violin for the talent competition by having her stand in front of a microphone, a violin emergency was born.

A few minutes surfing the Web led Dianna to us, and we discussed Molly's playing, the kind of tone she was looking for, and Mom's concerns for not getting her an instrument that would cause Molly any problems transitioning back and forth between her acoustic violin and her electric.

And then came a question I'd never encountered before. What would the violin look like with a mango evening gown? Here at the Electric Violin Shop, however, we are prepared for (virtually) any eventuality. Dianna needed a warm, acoustic tone, a fairly traditional shape, and an instrument that would look great with a mango evening gown. No problem, right?

We fixed her right up, with a Bridge Aquila 4-string in purple pearl metallic, fitted with Perfection Pegs for ease of tuning, paired with a CodaBow Electric in its wild harlequin paint that shifts from purple metallic to forest green metallic, depending on the angle of the light. Then we shipped the instrument, amp, and accessories overnight, so Molly would have plenty of time to get used to her new rig before the big night.

UPS worked miracles, picking up Molly's new kit at our shop at 5:30 in the evening and delivering it before 10:00 the next morning. Dianna called, excited, and I got to talk briefly with an overjoyed Molly. I also got to hear her play the purple Bridge through her new amp in the background, while Dianna and I talked. Molly's quite an accomplished violinist; Mom told me she's already been playing for 9 years!

Not only did Molly win the talent competition, rumor (from both her Mom and the photographer who so graciously allowed us to use these photos) has it that she brought down the house!

(special thanks to Donnie Meadows of http://www.seetexarkana.com and Four States Living Magazine for permission to use his photos of Molly!)

Marching Cello? Marching band with a cello!

Here is satisfied EVS customer Andrew Pirolo playing his NS Design 5 string cello in the Nipomo (California) High School band, at a football game and in the Grover Beach Christmas parade. My hat is off to his band director. Talk about being flexible ("Sure, we can use a cello.")!

It gives me great hope for the world our children are inheriting from us to let a young musician's enthusiasm bubble over in ways we would not think of as ordinary. Woody Allen's joke about a cellist with a chair in a marching band has been solved by Ned Steinberger's cello with shoulder harness system!

Consider this an invitation to all players to send us photos and stories of where your creativity is taking you and your instrument!

Light Up Violin

A violinist who saw the Trans-Siberian Orchestra concert in Raleigh came in and asked us about Mark Wood's light-up violin. We showed her the Ted Brewer, with on-board LED's, but she just wanted something inexpensive for a Christmas concert. I found some battery operated Christmas lights at a local Pharmacy (an Eckerds) and wrapped them around the scroll. I left enough cord to put the battery compartment in my pocket. Behold! - a Christmas Light Violin!

As you can see, it has a cool Yule effect! And was under $5, even including alkaline batteries (not included!). No, we don't sell these, but I'm sure you can find them locally. Have a glowing Holiday Season!!

The Violinist as Gear Head

As more violin players acquire a pickup or electric instrument or computer interface or effects pedal, they enter a domain long the exclusive territory of the guitar player, or jazzman. The days are fading when one good acoustic violin (viola, cello or bass) will take you as far as your musical vision can see. You may want a solid body electric so you can really dig what the electronic effects are doing to your sound. You'll want the right interface to record your music into your computer (and choose the software that reflects how you play and record). A 5 stringed instrument (violin, cello, or bass) can take you deeper in range, but will your amplifier be able to handle it? How about a couple of electric violins of different colors and shapes to more closely reflect your expression?

The good news is this new equipment does not need to be expensive to serve your needs. And that your skills navigating a cell phone or iPod can ease your transition. The bad news is that it is easy to choose incompatible items. So, enter the role of the Gear Head. The Gear Head loves to experiment with different instruments, black boxes of any sort, programs, etc., enjoying the hunt as much as the choice of equipment. It will be a while before your local violin shop takes on this role (and good luck finding a guitar store willing to indulge a bowed player). So, here is Electric Violin Shop, willing to help you become your own Gear Head. Our educational program is free. The course outline is scattered in the various categories of our website. The really fun stuff starts to happen as your dreams coalesce and you call us for help to guide you through the forest of Gear. Just give it up to the pull of becoming a Gear Head - your audience will love you for it!

Flashy New Violins!

The new Ted Brewer electric violins have arrived in the US from the UK - complete with bright LED's that glow as you play!

The Brewer Vivo² violin has a totally new shape, molded from a translucent pearlescent polymer with embedded sparkles. The lights look fantastic in a dim setting. More of them light up as you play louder - now that's a flashy fiddle!

Sound is good, too, with a new bridge design unlike any I've seen before. There are touch buttons instead of volume or tone knobs. The sleek body shape feels quite natural, and holds your current shoulder pad quite firmely.

Definitely an "electrifying" choice for a moderately priced electric violin.